iPhone 5S vs. Nexus 5: Which phone should you buy?

With yesterday’s release of the Nexus 5, and last month’s iPhone 5S, we now have two smartphones that are very clearly at the top of their game. On the one hand, the Nexus 5 brings you all of the latest and greatest technology, a huge 5-inch screen, and costs just $350 off-contract. On the other, the iPhone 5S is a sleek, light, beautifully designed phone with class-leading performance and battery life — but in true Apple fashion, it misses some newer technologies, such as NFC and 802.11ac. If you’re trying to decide between the iPhone 5S and Nexus 5, read on for our full breakdown of the two devices.

iPhone 5S vs. Nexus 5: Hardware specs, network support

The Nexus 5 has a 4.95-inch 1920×1080 IPS display (445 PPI), bonded to some Gorilla Glass 3. The body is 8.59 millimeters (0.34 inches) thick, and weighs 130 grams (4.58 ounces). Inside, there’s a Snapdragon 800 SoC, with the four Krait CPU cores clocked at 2.3GHz, and an Adreno 330 GPU. There’s 2GB of RAM, up to 32GB of internal storage (not expandable), and a 2300 mAh battery. On the back there’s an 8-megapixel camera with optical image stabilization — but early reviews suggest that you shouldn’t get your hopes up about the Nexus 5’s camera quality.

The iPhone 5S has a relatively tiny 4-inch 1136×640 IPS display (326 PPI), but it does manage to be both thinner and lighter than the Nexus 5 (7.6mm thick, 112 grams heavy). Of course, once you put that big, ugly case on your iPhone, those physical measurements will change considerably. Inside, there’s the 64-bit A7 SoC (dual Cyclone CPU cores clocked at 1.3GHz and probably the new PowerVR G6430 GPU) and M7 coprocessor. There’s 1GB of on-package RAM, up to 64GB of internal storage (not expandable), and a 1570 mAh battery. The rear camera is the same 8MP as the Nexus 5, but the iPhone 5S’s photo quality seems to be far superior.

On the wireless connectivity front, both the Nexus 5 and iPhone 5S support 4G LTE (but band support will vary between phones and models, so be sure to check the small print). Both phones also support Bluetooth 4.0, but the iPhone 5S draws the line at 802.11n, while the Nexus 5 supports the oh-so-fast-and-sexy 802.11ac. Both phones have all of the usual gyros, accelerometers, sensors, GPS, and so on. The Nexus 5 supports NFC, while Apple still stubbornly refuses to bring NFC to its smartphones.

Apple has never been one to compete in terms of raw figures, and that stance has never been more clear than with the Nexus 5 and iPhone 5S. On paper, the Nexus 5 blows the iPhone 5S away. In practice, the 5S’s hardware spec is just fine — after all, it ultimately comes down to how the hardware interacts with the software. Synthetic benchmarks mean very little if both phones feel snappy.

iPhone 5S vs. Nexus 5: Software

As with all modern computers, by far the biggest factor affecting day-to-day usage is software, not hardware. The Nexus 5 ships with the newest version of Android, 4.4 KitKat; the iPhone 5S ships with iOS 7. Both mobile operating systems are wildly different, as you probably know. For an in-depth look at each OS, check out our iOS 7 and Android 4.4 explainers.

In short, Android 4.4 is more powerful — more capable and feature-rich — while iOS 7 is generally slicker, faster, and more-integrated. It’s generally easier to get things done on the iPhone 5S with iOS 7 — but only if Apple has deigned to allow you. If you have less-conventional use-cases, the Nexus 5 with Android 4.4 is probably a better bet. The app ecosystem for Android and iOS is pretty comparable, but iOS probably still has the edge if you’re looking to use the latest and greatest apps.

iPhone 5S vs. Nexus 5: Pricing

Beyond the software, the next big differentiator is price. The Nexus 5 with 16GB of storage starts at $350 off-contract, or $400 for the 32GB model. If you want a contract-free iPhone 5S, you can pick up a 16GB model from T-Mobile for $650. On-contract, the iPhone 5S starts at $200 — and weirdly enough, Sprint is offering the Nexus 5 for the same on-contract price of $200. T-Mobile will also offer the Nexus 5, but hasn’t yet announced pricing — with its recent shifts in contracting and monthly plans, we’d hope that the Nexus 5 is offered at a reasonable price.

iPhone 5S vs. Nexus 5: Which one should you buy?

When it comes down to it, unless you’re a power user, there are just three factors you need to consider when buying a Nexus 5 or iPhone 5S: The camera, the size of the device (and your hands), and pricing. If you’re an avid phone photographer, the iPhone 5S looks like it’ll be the better choice (we need some more hands-on time with the Nexus 5 to be sure, though). Size-wise, the iPhone 5S is a lot easier to hold if you have smaller hands — and indeed, even with big hands, you might struggle to hold the Nexus 5 comfortably. On price, the Nexus 5 simply can’t be beaten — but only if you have access to carrier that has a SIM-only offering.

If you’re a power user — i.e. someone who knows that they will use NFC, 802.11ac, or other features that fit certain, specific use-cases — then the Nexus 5 is a very fine choice indeed.

Tagged In

Incredibly biased towards Apple. Apple wins in overall ecosystem and camera. In every other way the Nexus 5 is superior. It’s incredible that a tech site can be this clueless

tektel

I sense the smell of a “Sebastian Anthony” up there. I’ll take a look (disclamer: fingers cross, it may fail)

http://www.mrseb.co.uk/ Sebastian Anthony

It’s so sad that people like you keep perpetuating the myth that I’m some kind of Apple fanboy. I use one piece of Apple hardware — a MacBook Pro — because at the time, there was no comparable hardware from Microsoft’s OEMs. That’s it, believe it or not. Otherwise I run a fully Windows/Android house.

Scott Jackson

You perpetuate the myth yourself with your biased writing…

Pollo Loco

He’s just stating facts…geez. Why do people get so serious about this stuff? Sheesh.

HowardBrazee

Kind of like the sports casters who are always biased towards the other team. As observed by people who watch the same game but who have different loyalties.

The1nChicago

I am sad to say this but its obvious you have no professional integrity as a blogger and unfortunately it shows. When I first visited this site, it was not apparently. However, your spots started showing so fast. Like they say, if it looks like a duck and quacks like a duck, then its a duck.

John Zampier

I love that it’s a “struggle to hold the Nexus 5 comfortably”. I’ve been using 2 phones for the past 2 years that are only a few millimeters smaller than the Nexus 5 dimensions (GNex/Razr HD). I HAVE small hands and I have no problem with one-handed operation of either. I expect to have no problems with this phone after handling a G2, which is even larger. I could go on about how Android OS is more integrated than iOS too….

peketorl

LOL! MBP not comparable with windows oems? xD

Please, don’t be a fanboy

Vladimir Marjanovic

No comparable hardware? When did you buy it, 15 years ago? I had MSI GT725 17″ laptop 3-4 years ago and at that time was better than anything from crApple and it wasn’t even the best laptop on the market. Now I own Samsung Series 7 Gamer and crApple still can’t match its power, even if it is year and a half old piece of hardware…Only decent thing ever to come from Apple was iPad and iPhone 3GS, everything else is just overpriced junk.

un_aligned

Those are huge, ugly computers made for gamers.

He clearly wanted a svelte, beautiful computer, and Apple computer hardware is most definitely that.

Full disclosure: I have Windows, Linux, and Mac computers, and I use Android devices.

Pollo Loco

Best of luck with these wackos. Shame on you for stating facts and giving some insight. lol

sk

So either you and Anthony must be the only sane people here, or you both are the morons, and the rest of the world is wondering how you believe your own bullshit.

sk

“a MacBook Pro — because at the time, there was no comparable hardware from Microsoft’s OEMs”

LOL. Just how fucking retarded do you have to be to say that and then claim not to be a fanboy, all in the same sentence.

serg

no matter what you claim sebastian, your articles show a lot about you, there wont anything you can write to clean up your reputation even if your bed is samsung

BunsenBurnerNiceLittleEarner

Mention the OS comparison, then. That is the only reason i’d be keen to jump the Jobs ship. Google’s stock operating goodie has always been highly rated even back to day one. I dont believe this is just for power users, and really, the only reason that i myself have stuck with my trusty old 3Gs is, frankly, the OS. Samsung and HTC just stuff too much junk in each of their new models, too much of which can not be excised.

MJB

SA, Don’t even listen to these people saying this was a “Apple Fanboy Article”…. I was going to rip it as an Android Fanboy article! People have their bias… Your article was very much to the point and laying out all the (though subtle) differences. EXCELLENT ARTICLE!

Ray C

He’s probably not a fanboy at all. What is more likely the case is that all of us are effected by the feelings and writings of each other on technology. There was a time, especially pre-XP , that is was just popular to rag on Microsoft all the time, and even people who had no problems with their own system, would find themselves doing it. In much the same way, it’s just popular to compare everyone and everything to Steve Jobs or Apple. In some ways the “greatness of Apple” or “Apple just works” is something we’ve all subconsciously bought into to varying degrees.

serg

you must put you feeling outside if not look job in the genius bar

Fulaman1984

I don’t think he’s a fanboy either, he’s just following what the crowd says w/o testing things himself. Notice how in his article he says “based off of other reviews” w/o testing them himself. If anything, he should not have written this review. As aforementioned, the Camera hardware on both devices is the same, so I find it hard to believe that Apples camera is magically better when they both use Sony 8mp cameras.

greybirdtoo

Well, considering that modern cameras use software to process the input from the sensor chip, and that better software can give you better results with the same hardware, it actually makes sense that they don’t produce identical results. One will likely be better than the other. Since I don’t have either, and haven’t had a chance to try the cameras, I couldn’t say which is better but if they produced the same quality across the board I’d be surprised.

tektel

Oh yeah, same old song.

http://www.mrseb.co.uk/ Sebastian Anthony

“Overall ecosystem and camera” — do you have any idea how 95% (or more?) of consumers use their phones?

jeremy

Do YOU have any idea that 95% of consumers that purchase these phones wouldn’t even notice the difference in camera quality? Furthermore: Ecosystem does not mean much to these same consumers anyway. Most everyone i know has no clue there is anything to gain from pluging their phone into a computer (either camp). Not to say we should judge phone release stats based on usage by lowest common denominator, but this is what you’re referring to. As for myself. I’ll take the beautiful and large 5″ screen with ok camera over that tiny display anyday. As for ecosystem, i prefer to control mine anyway. Just look at the graphic on the top of your article and tell me your promoting of the iPhone over the Nexus (in general over the length of your article) was the right way to go.

http://www.mrseb.co.uk/ Sebastian Anthony

Yes, the difference is significant, and yes, people notice it.

FWIW, my main phone is a Lumia 1020, almost entirely for the camera.

Protagonist66

You know that you can just buy camera? Any 150$ camera has way better image quality than iPhones or even Lumia

http://www.mrseb.co.uk/ Sebastian Anthony

Sure. I have a Canon 6D (I’m a pro photographer). But I don’t want to carry around a smartphone and another camera, if I can avoid it.

As the saying goes, the best camera is the one that you have with you.

Protagonist66

True that. What comes to 600$ smartphones, if only thing better than average is camera I wouldn’t even consider it. If I can get much more powerful phone (on about every section) with half the price, even it might lose on camera I’d still go on with that cheaper one. This goes both iPhone 5s and Lumia 1020.

jeremy

Surely you’ve won me over with this retort.

Do people at large use the crap out of their phone camera? Yes. Would most of them even notice the difference in camera quality between the iPhone 5S and Nexus 5? No. No they would not.

However what they would immediately notice is the picture they just took looks STUNNING on a 5″ high-PPI screen. Also they might be encouraged to actually share these photo’s with people near them (using the device) since there is a large enough display to enjoy them on.

http://www.mrseb.co.uk/ Sebastian Anthony

I think there are reasons for picking the Nexus 5, and reasons for picking the iPhone 5S.

It’s definitely true that people love big screens. It’s also true that they love a good camera, and seamless integration with other services. Yes, power users will probably get more out of the Nexus 5 than the iPhone 5S — but also, power users have already bought their Nexus 5 and don’t need a story like this to help them decide.

You don’t have to agree with my rationales for buying a Nexus 5 vs. iPhone 5S — but I do stand by them.

Olaf Borkiewicz

Sebastian, could you please explain to me “seamless, better integration” in iOS7. Do you mean Twitter, Facebook and Instagram? I get that those three are important to the casual user and are “baked” into iOS7 but it’s just as easy to share/post to those services from an Android device. Sure, Facebook app for Android still sucks(!) but it’s getting better. As for the rest of the apps and services (including Google services) Android platform is much more capable, isn’t it?

jimv1983

I too just bought a Nexus 5. My one concern is battery life. What are you expecting? What would you find acceptable?
How long off the charger? How much screen on time? For me it would be 16 hours off charger with 4 hours screen on time. I really hope the Nexus 5 provides that. I’m already happy with the sample camera shots I’ve seen.

Daniel Kerwood

People were “concerned” about the smallish battery in the MOTO X but after using the things in realtime, they were astounded by the life.

jimv1983

The Moto X has a 720p AMOLED. The Nexus 5 has a 1080p IPS LCD. The biggest power hog on any phone is the screen and the Nexus 5 has pretty much the worst possible screen when it comes to battery life.

Daniel Kerwood

Yeah, I do not see why they could not keep with the AMOLED. I love it. Even at 720p.

crescentdave

because the latest lcds have better outdoors performance

jimv1983

I think what people would notice more than the overly high ppi screen is how fast that screen kills the battery.

crescentdave

apple sure made a big deal out of their “retina” display. And it became a major selling point which was repeated by customers.

The1nChicago

Sebastian has a Nokia 1020, shocking!!!!!!!!!

http://www.mrseb.co.uk/ Sebastian Anthony

I know, after 2 years of people calling me an Apple AND and Android fanboy (?!?!), I am in actual fact… A NOKIA FANBOY!

Jack Hsiung

actually, it only tells me that you have no knowledge of neither Apple or Android, so you wrote your article based on what? from your Apple Fanbo friends?

granted, WP OS is nice, however, 4.7-5.3″ screen is now the optimal screen size for a smartphone.

also, 1 hand typing with Swype on my 4.7″ Blu Life Play is an absolute joy! i swype with 1 hand much faster than most iTarts typing with 2 hands.

greybirdtoo

So you’re saying that because he owns one type of phone he can’t do research and testing on other ones? So since you obviously have an android, you have no knowledge of iOS devices and shouldn’t comment on them because your comment is based on nothing relevant. Just taking your comment to it’s logical conclusion. :-)

sk

What? If you want a good camera, buy a fucking camera. What kind of photographer roams around with a shitty mobile cam?

HowardBrazee

The best camera is the one you have with you. Sure, photographers want to bring their good cameras with them wherever they go – but few don’t sometimes get into a situation where the camera they want is with them every time. So they want a good back-up. (Like having a good backup quarterback in a football game)

crescentdave

I think it’s more of a situation where you’d appreciate the best possible camera you could get on your smartphone- as opposed to best pictures overall. Convenience and portability. It’s nice to just be able to snap a few and the iphone 5s is rated superior to the Nexus by the vast majority of reviewers.

jimv1983

I’d really prefer the Nexus 5 to have a smaller screen. It’s not that I don’t like the big 5″ screen it’s the fact that phones with 5″ screens are so damn big. Easy one handed use and comfortable pocketability would be nice. However my biggest concern is battery life. I really fear the Nexus 5 battery life will suck. I already bought one so I can make my own decision instead of waiting for reviews that are usually not very accurate anyways. If the battery life isn’t acceptable I’ll end up selling it. I really hope it doesn’t come to that.

abcdefgqwerty

Im passing because I prefer smaller phone with better battery. A phone that works a long time is much more important to me then prettier picture or faster cpu.

jimv1983

I agree but about the better battery but I bought it anyways so I can judge for myself. If not I can sell it for a profit.

As for the phone size I very much agree but unless I get an iPhone I’m pretty much stuck with a large phone if I want decent performance and I HATE Apple and iOS so getting an iPhone sure isn’t going to happen.

Jack Hsiung

then get yourself a phone with replaceable batteries. just keep a spare battery on you.

greybirdtoo

So, you’re saying because you believe that most people won’t notice which phone takes better shots it isn’t a relevant thing to write about? That doesn’t make sense. What would you say if the Nexus took better pictures? Most of the people I know have reasons for picking Android or iOS devices, and they are individual and varied. They are also all correct, because everyone is different, and what some people see as important others see as negligible. So writing about _all_ the differences can help people make a decision, because they will find what matters to them there and discard the rest.

jeremy

If i was looking for comparison results based on cool-kid popularity and status symbols, I would have waited for GQ to release their opinion on these devices. This is Extreme TECH. Write about it

http://www.mrseb.co.uk/ Sebastian Anthony

Did you see all the hardware and specs and stuff in the post? Or did you gloss over all those delicious numbers and analysis?

jeremy

Here’s some expert analysis for you:

Year: 2013
Nexus 5: 5″ 445 PPI screen
Price: $350

iPhone: 4″ 326 PPI screen
Price: $650

Your “arguments” are invalid

http://www.mrseb.co.uk/ Sebastian Anthony

Yay, more PPIs beyond what your eyes can see. The fact that the screen is BIGGER is nice, for sure. But faster/higher resolution/etc isn’t always a good thing. There are trade-offs. Higher resolution/bigger screen = more power consumption to illuminate it = lower battery life (or larger battery = heavier device). Faster processor = more power consumption = …

Mobile computing isn’t about raw speed or resolution or screen size. It’s about making the right choice for your use cases. (For now, anyway. In a few years, everything will be so light/powerful/long-lasting that it won’t matter.)

jeremy

Here’s a use case for you based on consumers wallets:

One can nearly buy 2 Nexus 5’s for the price of the iPhone

Result of study: consumers not directly affected by ADF will be using the Nexus

jimv1983

You make a good point about the price of the Nexus 5 but that isn’t an excuse for the tiny battery. It would have added very little to the cost to include the G2 battery.
I already ordered my Nexus 5. I really hope I don’t have to sell it due to bad battery life.

Chris Shakal

And that’s exactly why Apple can get away with using a tiny 1570mAh battery and get similar battery life as any other phone.

rweb82

That, and the fact that iOS is basically just an app drawer/notification shade. If all Android phones had to do was power an app drawer and notification shade, then their battery life would be incredible! Could you imagine a a 2300 mAh battery on a phone with only an app drawer as its operating system?

My point is, Android gives the user an actual operating system- not just an app launcher. And most flagship Android phones are on par with the iPhone in terms of battery life. I think that’s pretty remarkable.

serg

yeh same was said when apple said they wont sell plastic phones now that the analyst know that apple will sell 4.8inch iphones ,what will you say……..for you mobile computing is anything android/samsung is not doing

rweb82

In theory, yes, a larger display equals worse battery life. However, that’s not really true in “real world” comparisons. Because if it was true, then the iPhone would have phenomenal battery life. However, it does not have any better real-usage battery life than the Nexus 5, or any other Android phone.

As for my preferences, I will take the larger display any day! The weight of the phone is really negligible. Most people seem to prefer a certain amount of “heft” in the hand- as it gives off a feeling of quality/sturdiness. The iPhone just feels hollow.

serg

dont waste your time ,your post is like this: anything apple better than the competition

jimv1983

At the current pixel density we are seeing on high end phones the actual number is just a meaningless number on paper. The difference between 326 and 444 is not even noticeable by the human eye. I’d much rather give up some ppi for better battery life.

Battlereaver

I agree. I was hoping to see more benchmarking and comparing the two with actual data. Like doing GPU and CPU benchmarks and battery life time test. But usually when I see a something VS Apple article I already know the outcome someone copy and pastes the stats in the paragraph and summarizes with well iPhone has more apps and takes good pictures so clearly it wins.

jimv1983

The iPhone 5S beats the Nexus 5 in battery life as well which sucks because I can’t stand iOS or Apple in general.

The numbers you posted are like EPA estimates for MPG. They aren’t even close to real.

My current phone (Galaxy SII Skyrocket) claims 256 hours of stand by time but it has never gotten even close to that. Even if left in stand by the entire time it gets maybe 25 hours.

Just in listening to people’s(co-workers, friends, people or tech forums) experiences I hear that more people say good things about battery life on iPhones than on Android phones.

iPhones get a little bit better battery life on much smaller batteries. Take something like the Galaxy S4 for example. It can get about 9 hours with about 2.5 hours of screen on time with a 2,600mAh battery. The iPhone 5S can out last that on it’s 1,570mAh battery. That is 60% the size.

Facts are facts and the data shows that per mAh the iPhone gets much better battery life. If Apple made an iPhone with a 3,000mAh battery it would probably last DAYS of heavy use.

vzoom96

you guys understand that kit kat has some optimization also right to reduce to amount of ram and power needed for everything, increasing the battery life for the phones which have it

jimv1983

Oh course but those optimizations won’t make enough of a difference to make up for how much power the 5″ 1080p IPS LCD is going to use and how much power the GPU will use to render all those unnecessary pixels. In terms of power usage the screen on the Nexus 5 is pretty much the worst screen you can have on a phone.

I bought a Nexus 5 just to give it a chance but if it is unacceptable as I fear it likely will be then I will end up selling it.

luviathanx

Just listening in on the few people you know makes a great sample to reflect the world’s experience right?
I’m posting numbers that’s all I have at the moment is just the spec sheet as the phone was just released we will only now start to see real world samples of Nexus 5 battery life.

Again I’m still waiting on your source stating that the iPhone 5s has better battery life than the Nexus 5.

jimv1983

The iPhone 5s gets better battery life than Android phones that are somewhat similar to the Nexus 5. Of course no one has done real world battery tests on the Nexus 5 yet but we have seen battery tests on other phones running similar screens to the Nexus 5 and similar sized batteries and it is well known that the screen of any phone(and indirectly the GPU) is the biggest power hog.

One of the biggest things I can think of that shows the battery life difference between the iPhone and Android phones is people’s reaction to phones with non-removable batteries. Most people with an iPhone seem to not really care much about not being able to swap the battery because it is hardly ever and issue they have to think about and that is with a MUCH smaller battery than the average Android phone. People that buy Android phones are often upset about small batteries(like the 2,300mAh battery of the Nexus 5) and non-removable batteries because it is really an issue. Any Android phone besides the G2 and Droid Maxx need either a battery swap or charge at some point during the day to get through a day of moderate usage.

I’m not even sure what kind of sources you would want that really mean anything. Battery claims and so called “reviews” end up being like EPA MPG estimates on cars. They don’t mean anything in real world usage. Do you want me to get a statement from everyone I have ever talked to and every message board about real world experience I have ever read?

We can make pretty good estimates of the Nexus 5 battery life based on the following:

1. The screen is the biggest power hog on any phone.

2. LCD is the worst type of screen tech for power usage. IPS type LCDs are the worst type of LCDs for power usage.

3. Higher resolution means higher power usage because the GPU has to work harder, and therefore use more power, to render the huge amount of pixels many times a second.

4. The HTC One has a very similar screen. It is the same resolution, same IPS LCD technology and SMALLER than the screen on the Nexus 5. The HTC One’s battery life is not at all impressive.

5. The LG G2 has the same CPU, GPU and similar screen and gets good battery life but it also has a 30% larger battery AND battery saving GRAM that the Nexus 5 does not have. Also note that 30% bigger battery doesn’t mean just 30% more battery life. Batteries don’t discharge at a linear rate so that is even more of an issue.

So no we haven’t seen real world hands on battery tests from the Nexus 5 but smartphones didn’t come out yesterday. We have a LOT of information that we can use to make a VERY educated guess at what likely battery life will be given the specs we know. I’ll go back to my vehicle MPG analogy from before and put it this way, the 2015 Ford F150 V8 isn’t out right now. I have not seen any claims of MPG for that truck but I’ll guarantee it won’t get 50MPG.

The Nexus 5 will likely get very good stand by times but poor screen on times.

This source consistently shows 3-4 android phones trouncing the iPhone 5s in battery life in all tests. You were saying something about iphones having better battery life than androids? That’s a pretty bold statement to make.

jimv1983

But like I said those numbers never seem to match up with what people seem to get in real life.

Take for example the HTC One on the link you sent me. It says the HTC One gets about 10 hours on both browsing and video play back but in reality it gets nothing even close to that. I have spent a pretty good amount of time using that phone during in store tests. 10 hours of browsing/video playback is basically saying 10 hours of screen on time which no phones actually get.

I used the HTC One in the store for 30 minutes. Screen on the entire time. I did a mix of browsing and video playback. After 30 minutes the battery was down 12%. If the battery continued to drain at the same rate it would have been just over 4 hours of screen on time and batteries don’t drain on the same rate. They drain faster the more discharged they get.

The fact that it mentions any variation of the Galaxy SII getting 10 hours of ANY time of activity just shows it isn’t valid. I have a Galaxy S II and the battery life is TERRIBLE.

Most phones also claim to get like 250-300 hours of stand by time. That is 10-12 days. Nothing gets even HALF of that for stand by time.

luviathanx

We’re talking about batteries here, not gas tanks.
Those battery tests are conducted right out of the box before the phone is personalized and loaded with various apps. Obviously the battery life will differ for each person as one person may be comfortable at 15% screen brightness vs someone who prefers 90%. Then you have apps to account for some of which can put a serious strain on battery.

My Nexus 4 could probably go more than a week without charging on standby. Currently I get ~20 hours of mixed usage with the screen at 60% brightness. I have a iPhone 5s that my job gave me for work and I’ve noticed slightly better battery life.

Based on what I use and how I use my phone, the battery lasts me the whole day on a charge which is good enough for me. So if the Nexus 5 claims better battery life than it’s predecessor I’m as good as gold. =)

jimv1983

Of course we are talking about batteries and not gas tanks but it’s still a fair comparison. I compared battery ratings to MPG estimates because neither one of them is ever even close to real world numbers that people actually get. Even your statement that people used their phones differently can also apply to cars as well. People drive differently and that seriously impacts mileage.

Based on your single claim that the Nexus 4 could go for over a week in stand by compared to the dozens of other user reports I’ve read that said they could maybe get 2 days of just stand by I think I’ll believe the majority.

With 20 hours on the Nexus 4 I’m guessing you consider “mixed usage” to mean about 30-60 minutes of screen on time.

luviathanx

Yeah because the verb “using” means not turning on my phone’s display at all right?

I provided a link of over 300+ pages in Apple’s forums with people complaining about the iphone 5s poor battery life. If you want majority to believe in, there you have it.

Derukun

IPhones are known to have a very quickly declining maximum battery capacity. I’m sure there can’t be that many differences from an Iphone 5 and a 5s. My brother has had a Iphone 5 for about a year and a half now, and can’t get through a single day of normal usage without having to use his battery pack case. Sounds like some pretty ridiculous shit.

Whereas I had a Nexus 4 on a custom mod/kernel, which after a full day still had >30% more juice.

serg

and they have 1/3th resolution if they were the same resolution as s4 they would last 2 hours

serg

its real all my friends with 5 or 5s have battery problems and crashing apps..apple wont sell a 3000mh handset cos thinness is better for them,is there anything more laughable?( my phone is dead but thin)

Chris Caldwell

the nexus 4/5 are certainly not what I would consider “large” phones, or phones which I would worry about fitting into hands. My wife, who is tiny btw, was worried about getting the N4, coming from an iphone. She has no problem using it and loves it.

If you have yet to test the camera enough for a comparison, how bout not commenting on the results. All specs actually point to the N5 having a better camera. The G2 camera out performs the ip5s camera in all areas except low light, as it traded pixel area for pixel count. The N5 has the same camera setup, except it went with the 8MP larger pixel area, so in theory it should still outperform with the added benefit of covering that ‘noise’ issue of the G2. All that, and its not even considering the practicality off OIS. Mostly this is made possible by the superior “stacked cmos” sensor.

Bill Norton

Jeremy, you are the one who comes across as bias(and a jerk).
You seem to think that better hardware makes a better phone, and when the hardware is worse(phone) then it doesn’t matter. Quite convenient.

As for my bias, I have an android phone, and own nothing from apple(oh wait, I did once win an ipod nano which I promptly sold, does that count?).

richstyle

wait arent you a hypocrite considering you too are biased towards Apple at how much you hate it. There is no difference in his article than the words you have commented. You both are biased and opinions between two people never change becuase we are humans.

MJB

You are INSANE! This is not even close to being biased toward Apple!

Fulaman1984

I don’t see how Apple wins in Camera if the Cameras on both devices are the exact same….most be a camera software issue

Bexon

cool down, it is iPhone better. Nexus have better and bigger screen and few other things like 802ac. No offence i got my iPhone 5s 64Gb and I will buy Nexus 5 to.
Both phones are the best what we can find on market.

Tessoro Desoto

That is called having an opinion, not bias. Just enjoy your phone apple hater lol

Abstract

The nexus 5 is not large at all once you handle the Note 3. I have large hands and can use the Note 3 without problems, the Nexus 5 seems to be the sweet spot (5″) between large (5.7″) and small (4″).

jeremy

Agreed, I have small hands and use the GS4 just fine. Same screen size as the Nexus 5.

Joel Detrow

I have a 5″ device, and I have quite a bit of difficulty reaching the other side of the screen with my thumb. It’s worth it, though, because I’d rather watch movies and TV shows on a 5″ screen during long rides in a car, van, or bus.

I wish reviewers would stop giving people the impression that some phones are big and some not.

Truth is that most people will find iPhone tiny and could easily seal with 1-1.5 more screen.

They shouldn’t do stuff like put note 3 power button on side or say you need to shift phone to reach buttons. It’s so small it feels like it’ll slop out of my hand. Need to get a hefty case/ hope galaxy mega or something gets better specs for my next upgrade.

Let’s see if Netherlands has gun control because they have tall people advocacy groups lol.

Singh1699

For most people it’s better to save the 300 and get a nexus.

Protagonist66

It seems I have to wait for real comparison cause this one is crap :D If you like photographing you should buy a camera. And what comes to the size, I don’t think that 5″ devise could be any smaller than Nexus 5. What seems to be the word of today is OS and there is not enough “real life” reviews of 4.4. What I’ve been reading about 4.4 it’s superior against iOS but that’s just my opinion based on what I wan’t from OS.

Osymandias

‘early reviews suggest that you shouldn’t get your hopes up about the Nexus 5′s camera quality’

Can you please give a link to those ‘early review’ sites?

Also, a good photos has nothing to do with camera quality :D

standard

To answer the question in the title: HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!
Are you serious?! One has a far lower price, far higher spec, much better app store, etc. How is this even a question!?
And to bring it down to camera, or size, or whether you can get a sim only contract??
You should be ASHAMED!

chojin999

” far higher spec, much better app store” … are you serious ? Better hardware specs.. what? Where? When ? No where to be seen.

And the mess that is with multiple Android app stores would be a better thing for who and for what exactly ?

I can only laugh at your final paragraph. All iOS apps are flawless, and no ones jail breaks an iphone, right?

Don’t feel like disputing the price, eh?

Mark

I think it’s stupid how they chase specs instead of making it a better phone.

A 2.3Ghz quad will throttle and the PPI will not make any difference.

The iPhone’s processor architecture will make it faster under most smartphone use cases, not like that really matters as they both should be plenty fast for them.

Better optimization would give the Nexus an extra hour or two of screen on time…

Kandiboyyy

I get so annoyed by people with their stupid 64bit architecture argument. 64 bit processors are not inherently faster than 32 bit chips. It means it supports more ram. The higher PPI won’t throttle the n5 because its got double the ram than the iPhone. Its like putting a diesel engine in a Prius. Completely redundant. 64 bit plus 1 gig of ram = no benefit + false marketing. In fact if iOS wasn’t optimized for a small number of chip sets it would run worse than android 2.2. Building a stable platform on 1 processor is worlds easier than building one for 15.

Mark

You missed my point completely.

I was not arguing particularly for 64-bit. Apple’s underlying arch is better than SnapdragonBut, if you knew what ARM’s new ArmV8(64-bit) improvements were, you would also know that the move will help performance even more. Register space and added/redone instructions can make it 20%+ faster for recompiled apps.

I wasn’t referring to PPI throttling the N5… I was referring to heat from the 2.3Ghz quad.

Diesel would make the Prius even more efficient! And most likely more reliable… :)

The biggest letdown for me was the 1GB of ram,. Reloading isn’t often a big deal, but can be a bother… This is made even worse from the move to 64-bit.

Kandiboyyy

Your right I totally missed the point in your comment Lol. I think I filled in blanks that didn’t exist.

I do disagree about diesel making a Prius more efficient though, it would be more powerful but its not heavy enough to tow too much anyways. Its a very underrated car IMO.

When you said architecture i assumed you meant 64 bit architectures in general. And I won’t lie I don’t know which is better between ARM’s new chips and Qualcomm’s architectures. I do know that Qualcomm’s chips have run great on all the devices I’ve used. Heating also shouldn’t be an issue on the 5 if they don’t fail at the design like there is in the 4. I had to manually apply a heatsink into it and that solved all heating issues even with over clocking. 1080p screens are actually noticibly more vivid than 720p logically though you cant see pixels either way, and as long as it doesn’t kill battery too much I’ll take the other hits. But yeah toting 64 bit by itself as a marketing scheme is still annoyingly brilliant to me. Especially with that datn 1 gig of ram.
I won’t lie that the 5s kills the benchmarks… Which dont always translate into performance.

serg

you can slice snapdragon in 4 parts and drive the tiny iphone screen easy,apple wont up the screen cos they cant take the power to drive 1080…(massive replies coming soon in 1,2,3……)

serg

apple kids wont tell the diffrence ,apple could sell the same handset adevertising like 128 bit with minor tweaks and the 40 year old kids will run to the store””mom my life is complete my iphone is 128bit,please tim take my money!”

serg

with 33% less pixels to move ,you dont need a lot of power,,crappy ..comparing true HD with under microHD resolution on 5s..do you think a 2 seat car will need an engine with the same power requirement to drive a truck..A7 would need viagra to feed 1080p

dsp4

The multiple Android app stores point is moot. There’s Google Play, where 99% of people get their apps, and there’s the others. It’s actually quite nice, since you’re not forced to use Google’s store if you don’t want to. It’s all about choice.

And for the pirating thing, well, that’s just facepalm material.

Thomas guide

You can buy 2 nexus phones for the price of 1 iPhone. How is this a comparison? Does the writer understand what unlocked phone means? You can buy the nexus phone and drop any SIM card in it from any carrier and it will work. Google and nexus are the future.

Brick Green

The Nexus 5 won’t be on Verizon. And nexus is the future? IMO the N5 could/should have been much better. Google isn’t a hardware developer and I don’t get the feeling they really want to be.

Thomas guide

That’s one carrier that won’t have it, but everyone else will. And you can also go to prepaid services that use sim cards. True Google is not a hardware developer, but they are helping to bring quality phones at reasonable prices to people that don’t want contracts or can’t afford expensive iPhones.

Wussupi83

Just wanted to say I didn’t find this article biased. It’s one thing to stand up for your side, it’s another to accuse an author of bias. If both of these phones were running android then I’d agree that it’s stupid to even put these phones in competition. But they are two different platforms. You can’t blanketly state that a better price/specs means a better value to the customer in this scenerio. I think the writer did a good job at stating that if you don’t desire the iOS ecosystem then the nexus is the phone for you. He also stated that the new android update is very good and comes with many features that iOS doesnt.The camera is a mute point but you’re comparing two hardware devices as they are, this is not a review on the best digital photography experience, hence I don’t see why people mention that you can go buy another camera, it’s just out of scope of the article. Anyway, this was a very fair article in my mind and I don’t feel like unnecessary emphasis was placed on either device. If I was up for an upgrade I’d go check out both devices thinking they are going to be a good experience and not leaning toward one. Thanks :)

eric66f

I also didn’t find the article biased. I’ve owned iPhones since the 3S and also own three Android devices (Galaxy Tab, HTC One X, and Galaxy S4). I just ordered two iPhone 5S for reasons that have nothing to do with the hardware spec:
1. The iPhone (Apple) is a premium brand, with a quality product and a premium service (Apple Care service is excellent)
2. The build quality of the iPhone is high – doesn’t fee like a cheap product
3. the iPhone is expensive – not everyone can afford it
4. the iPhone works great with my Mac Book Air (great product) and iMac
5. I like the iOS ecosystem. Not perfect, Android better in some areas e.g. would love to have apps like Swype
6. I like the size, and the ability to access all the screen with one hand

7. I love Siri and how well dictation works when I’m driving my car

8. And most important, my wife never bothers me with any iPhone phone related questions!

I’ve had multiple problems with my three Android devices (e.g. tab kept crashing, poor battery on the HTC One X). I’m still using my GS4 for my work (haven’t tried the Nexus 5). It’s a good product but I personally don’t like the size (doesn’t fit in my pocket as comfortably as my 4S) and I find Android more complicated to use.

Google/Android has helped make Smartphones more affordable for many consumers. I don’t understand why people need to constantly compare Apple with Android devices, and fight over “who has the best spec” or O/S. From my perspective, it’s like arguing whether a BMW or Toyota has the best spec (might well be Toyota :-)). There is more to a product than a hardware spec.

serg

BMW doenst have the manufacturing defects of iphone and dont tell me that due to the amount of sales, sony has sold more ps3 with no defects ..and i dont think you can drive a BMW.. REASON WHY IPHONE IS NOT A EUROPEAN CAR.
1 its not made in large batches(you cant control the quality
2 BMW is made by specially trained workers ,iphone is made by children and school,quitters
3 BMW uses special top quality materials like special alloys, they care more in quality using very expensive upholstery..apple uses mid quality matterials to increase profits, check a 2 month ipod how looks like garbage
4 BMW won glue the engine to decrease repairability to make you buy other car

fans are delusional, apple will never be like BMW OR AUDI..and most of the fans dont know what is like driving a BMW(my boss drive one and i jump into on regular basis.

making a device expensive doenst make it premium .low IQ people buy expensive thing to feel superior, well you can stop eating meat for 2 months to buy apple..dont tell me iphone users dont take bus LOL have you seen people with gold rolex in the bus?

RedRainbowsAndPurpleUnicorns

iPhone!

BenderUK

What a bullshit of an article. Ever heard of writing articles not ads for Apple?

Serious question, what things are generally easier to do in iOS 7 than in Android? I’ll not accuse you of bias or anything, the article is fine, but this point stuck out to me as deserving a little more explanation. Just a couple of things to exemplify would be nice, since this is a very much touted point that I don’t think has been accurate for a long time.

For example, if I have a couple of mp3 songs in a USB drive, what’s the easiest way to transfer them to an iPhone to keep listening after I leave the work computer I’m currently using? Note: I’m not allowed to install iTunes or any other media software. What if I have a song I recorded myself (so copyright is mine) and I want to transfer it from my iPhone to my buddy’s iPhone?

Now, I understand that this might fall under your remark of “but only if Apple has deigned to allow you”, but I’m still curious what are those things you find easier to get done and why. Cheers.

abcdefgqwerty

I think I will stick with my old htc 3g slide with 512 ram. Yeah its slow, but my phone lasts like a week on one charge. Battery life has been inversely proportional to the usual increases like better displays, faster cpu… Not worth it for me I guess. I just talk and text anyways. You start life tethered by umbilical cord and funny enough phones again tether us to power sources. I have yet to see any advance on battery but they keep going at faster cpus like its not fast enough yet. What else do you need to do on a phone?

pixelstuff

Supposedly Android 4.4 had a lot of memory and gpu fine tuning to run faster on lesser hardware. Yet you imply a couple times that iOS is much smoother and faster. What testing leads you to believe that iOS 7 on the iPhone 5s is smoother and faster than Android 4.4 on the Nexus 5?

You also say not to get our hopes up on the camera quality of the Nexus 5. What early reviews are you referring to that indicate the Nexus 5 has a crappier camera than the iPhone 5s camera?

Jeremy Garcia

Apple has never been one to
compete in terms of raw figures, and that stance has never been more
clear than with the Nexus 5 and iPhone 5S. On paper, the Nexus 5 blows
the iPhone 5S away. In practice, the 5S’s hardware spec is just fine —
after all, it ultimately comes down to how the hardware interacts with
the software. Synthetic benchmarks mean very little if both phones feel snappy.

You just wrote an article on Sept. 20 touting Apple’s touch responsiveness vs Androids’; both systems felt responsive, especially considering animations, so by that logic, the fundamentally flawed responsiveness test a synthetic benchmark, with yourself admitting had the program been written in native code, the differences would have been less exaggerated. Again, you didn’t wast anytime touting the iPhone’s “superiority” with the title “iPhone 5 vs. Galaxy S4: Apple smartphones trounce Android in overall responsiveness”

This article has some serious bias – first off, giving iphone an advantage because of ergonomics? Seriously, the rectangle with fairly sharp edges is the least ergonomic design ever, and I, myself having very small hands (5’4″), have no problems holding a Note 2. You also give the iPhone an edge with camera before you’ve even had time to test it the Nexus 5!? You also dismiss synthetic benchmarks when the Nexus clearly reams the iPhone (a significantly larger margin compared to the system responsiveness benchmark). So either synthetics have merit, or they don’t – ditch the double stand when it suites your beloved Apple.

Seriously, do us all a favor: next time you write an Apple-biased article and just delete the article. We come to ExtremeTech because we’re technology enthusiasts, not the dim-wits who have more money than sense. From an objective point of view, the Nexus clearly wins this bout, with more features offered, faster hardware, and better display (larger and better pixel density) for a significantly lower price.

http://www.mrseb.co.uk/ Sebastian Anthony

Thanks for taking the time to comment.

I don’t quite get how you go from ‘it has a larger screen’ to ‘it’s objectively better’. Larger does not equal better. More PPI does not equal better. More bells and whistles does not equal better.

If you _NEED_ these things, yes, the Nexus 5 is better. I would argue that the additional PPI doesn’t really add much, and if anything it detracts (via reduced battery life, extra weight, etc.)

Yes, the difference in responsiveness is small between the iPhone 5S and Android superphones — but there is a clear difference, if you want to look for it.

Again, as I said above, power users will already know which phone they want. This post is for the 95-99% of users who aren’t power users. These users, for the most part, really don’t care about the lack of NFC, lower PPI, etc.

pixelstuff

Your closing sentence probably should have read something like this:

Until we do some actual hands on testing, the Nexus 5 appears to beat the iPhone 5s in every performance metric except perhaps the one that satisfies an Apple addiction, if you happen to have one of those.

I think I’ll be waiting on AnandTech to get their article out. They have a much better track record of accurate and logical reports.

Jeremy Garcia

Larger screens are better for content viewing, a primary reason to get a phone for any user. I agree that pixel density is also a detraction, but so is the response time; there isn’t any lag issues with Android phones, at least not these days.

And those users who aren’t power users, for the most part, don’t read on sites called ExtremeTech. This article belongs on CNET.

serg

they say apple dont care about the specs but they do it when they launch a product,,64bit is not a spec?…arguments from apple people are always fun because they lack substance as their gadgets

Erik Løvaas

Nexus 5 all the way. What sucks is that the 16 GB of the Nexus 5 costs nearly 700 bucks in Norway.

Tiago

how?

heda_p

you completely missed wireless charging feature…..
finally after using iphone5 for so long am returning new 5s for this one for various reasons as below….
WiFi ac
wireless charging
big 5″ screen
NFC (Google wallet payment)
$399 unlocked 32gb
“Ok Google”
default Google search and maps everywhere (ios gets me frustrated on this one)
compromises:
apps are definitely better integrated in ios
I’ll have to rebuy several apps
will miss appletv, though chromecast with hdmicec does most of the job
camera is much better in 5S
applecare+, will buy SquareTrade
and an awesome apple customer support

triumph1

I wasn’t exactly looking for a camera comparison. Not sure if any of the other features of this phone are of interest to the reviewer. Title should have read “which camera should you buy”

Ryan

The fact that it’s hard to discern which is the better device speaks volumes in itself, if it’s that close why the hell would you pay an additional $500 or $600 for an iPhone, it’s not as though it’s unique and it’s going to catch attention, everyone has one. The iPhone was totally relevant in 2007-2009, but these people that sleep outside to wait for the 5S while they’re holding their 5 are insane, I really don’t get it.

convolution

Oh what’s that stench? This article reeks like an Apple Store. Bias much?

Fry

Wow Sebastian you really have to deal with some ridiculous comments and hate all so that people can justify and feel better about their new phone purchase :/ if you like something but it, clearly you don’t need an article to help you, is that so difficult.

dsp4

“[…] there are just three factors you need to consider when buying a Nexus 5 or iPhone 5S: The camera, the size of the device (and your hands), and pricing.”

Wait, what? The *camera*? This article was a pretty fair comparison until that half-assed conclusion. I’d say there are hundreds of features that are more important than the camera when it comes to choosing a phone. Stuff like OS/ecosystem (what apps do you want to use?), screen size, build quality, battery life, ergonomics, even how the phone looks.

I hardly ever use the camera on my phone since 99% of the time, phone cameras suck anyway. You may have the best phone camera, any low-end, $300 point-and-shoot will blow it out of the water. Sure it’s nice when you don’t have a real camera around, but it’s more of a secondary feature than anything.

Multiverse

I would disagree. A few other points that you mentioned about, such as “OS/ecosystem” and other stuff would be good to bring up in the conclusion, but saying that the camera is a secondary feature only applies to some people. I have a lot of friends that constantly take pictures with their iPhones. I use a regular digital camera, and of course it beats their phones, but many people just don’t want another camera. They want it on their phones where they can upload it to Facebook and Twitter immediately.

But yeah, Sebastian Anthony, please update your conclusion. The article was great until then.

Matt

are you aware that there is a german tech-blog that copied your article word for word and translated it into german for their website.

C. Conner

OK here is something to ponder. If Apple has it so right then they should not change but what do you want to bet that within two years the iPhone will have a bigger screen just like Android or the Nexus line. The iPhone will eventually have a quad-core processor just like Android. And on and on and on until the iPhone will be no different than what Android phones have been for years now. If you iPhone lovers really think your phone is superior, then why will each new iPhone release look and feel more like an Android flagship every year. Because Android is where it’s at, and Apple is playing catch up. Period. Otherwise don’t change screen size, processing power, camera. It’s perfect now right?

dantewaters

You know what I have realize and I don’t think many do… Apple has a road map and they don’t change based on the wind. i say that to indicate that they have a progression and simply because some company adds a feature doesn’t mean they need to jump and add it too.

I am sure the screens will get bigger in the iphone 6 or whatever they call it, and I am sure the processors will increase but apple already has that for a specific time, and unless they want goto the beat of another company all these upgrades are coming. The only thing I don’t see coming is an open system like the android.

mtech58

I would buy neither. If one uses a basic phone, this is a savings of around $2700 over the 2 year contract. If you continue those frugal ways it would net you aver $100,000 over 30 years.

vperl

Writer seems very defensive. If the article has been researched, the writer has the skill to analysis the item, remembers what they are writing about, keeps from joining in …… The article should stand on the facts, not discussing the failure of his work.

Maybe today, objective articles are not PC .

Jamell Lewis

My question is, why do people assume most smartphone users are buying phones off contract?? Their mostly upgraded and new subsidized agreements. People use that 649.99 price to make the iPhone seem so expensive. Like 90+ percent of people do NOT buy unlocked phones. And guess what, if you want something you’ll pay for it. Reguardless of price. Also I have an iPhone 5S and S4. I can’t tell who has a better resolution. They both look great. iPhone just brighter. Cameras? My iPhone 5S takes better photos and videos. Especially in lower light (newborn nephew, we keep the lights low) and I take plenty of pictures. That doesn’t mean the S4 sucks. It’s still great. I love android. I have a stock rom on my S4. It’s smooth but when using the 5S then going to the S4 I honestly feel like my S4 isn’t moving as fluid.

Derukun

You can’t compare two phones that are on COMPLETELY different levels entirely. IPhone 5S has specs that are outdated by a good 3 years (1.3 ghz dual core? lol S2 was a 1.2 ghz dual core, damn son) with its only real strength is being its camera. What the hell lol if you’re so bent on a nice camera, get a damn DSLR. Unless you’re someone with dwarf hands (mine are actually very small but I was fine with a Note 2..) there’s no reason to prefer the Iphone over the Nexus 5 because of size. There’s just no competition. Iphone 5S is just brand-name, with a huge cult following of a bunch of Apple fags that for whatever reason are perfectly okay with Apple continuing to release products that are terribly outdated in technology at the same price point as products that are actually using recent tech.

Jamell Lewis

You’re laughing at those specs?? But they beat every phone including the nexus 5 in most benchmarks especially gaming. Maybe if you where focused on results instead of masterbating to the N5’s spec sheet you’d know that. Need a link?

Derukun

Lol yes, according to one magazine article. Isn’t that interesting, the benchmarks were made according to a Macbook! I wonder if things would have been different on a Windows laptop.

Regardless of benchmark tests, the iPhone is only running faster because its a smaller device. I’d rather have my 60 FPS PS1, DS and GBA games on my 5 inch Nexus 5, thanks.

Jamell Lewis

I play DS on my iPhone 5S. Not jail broken. Your point? You’re talking out your ass. You have no proof. The iPhone 5S is a beast. I play games heavy: dead trigger 2, the walking dead, Lego batman, infinity blade 3. So I need a gaming machine. I admit, at times I want a bigger screen but I use my phone 1 handed 99% of the time. The other 1 percent is when I’m holding my phone horizontally. That’s a trade off of having a big screen. Point is I love my fucking iPhone 5S, I lobe my fucking S4, I love my damn Androjd Tablet! There’s no rule that says you can only choose 1. Nooo I have the best of both worlds. So I’m winning. You’re to anti apple to enjoy some pretty good products.

Derukun

I’m just sick of Apple fanboys who put down Android. Since its clear now that you are in fact NOT an Apple fanboy but an unbiased man who just enjoys technology, I really can’t argue.

I just prefer not to use Apple products. They’ve been reaping more profit than they should for a long time, and I just can’t respect that.

dantewaters

One of the main reasons apple is reaping is because it has a name outside of phones, they had the iPod craze era and that help established them. Their phone came along and people got even more excited it really is one of the main reasons.

Samsung has a name too it just didn’t become a part of culture they just had the electronics (TVs, Bluray players etc) people liked them but at no time were their products branded as a accessory or fashion item.

If apple was just the computer company it was before the iPod era things would be a lottttt different.

i am not apple fanboy, i love my current nexus 4 more than anything, but beating quad core 2.3 with dual core 1.3 is an innovation to me. :)
and becuz of dual core, iphone gives better battery life as well, iphone is just so balanced.
i dont see the need of going above retina displaya as if at retina display you cant diffrentiate pixel than what the use going bove but as the consequence you will use more processor, may effect refresh rate and again consue more battery.

iphone 5s is my business phone and nexus 5 gonna be backup plus fun device. as i enjoy Android more but less restrictive app market with open OS comes with its own plus and minuses.

and forget to add, nexus 5 also gonna be my navigation device, as wireless charger integerated with navigation dock is a big plus for me with nexus 5.

serg

its easy on a tiny screen

serg

easy on a tiny, apple wont sell a bigger iphone cos they can t match the power requirements of 1080 video..dont t tell me you believe anandtech very likely for an apple minded ,anandtech is comparing 1080p vs a microHD device(one third resolution)…1920*1080 vs 1160*700…AWESOME MATH

dantewaters

Apple will indeed sell a bigger phone… At this point if the iphone 6 doesn’t have a overhaul it would clearly show that Apple is stuck with their current specs and are slowly coming out of the phone business (which I HIGHLY DOUBT).

I do believe the smaller screen helps in terms of power consumption but I also believe that there are bigger factors in play. I believe Apple uses Retina to avoid the use of (technologies from other companies) such is the case with their PCIe SSD drives. I also believe they try to be different not follow the beat of the rest (at least in every way).

The funny thing about the smaller screen argument is that the solution would be to add more battery power to get it to work at either the higher res or at the larger size. There is more to this than just (tricking customers into buying the same specs) it happens with their desktops too one of their machines will be updated with more RAM or longer battery, but the CPU speed lowers.

It seems Apple pushes in terms of look, function, consistency and branding vs. Revamping every time, Neck breaking speed, tons of variety, and complexity. A lot of us have been conditioned to think if something has a lot of buttons and options it has to be better. Where in life complexity is better I don’t know, but either way simple and consistent or tons of options and changing both iphone and Android help each other cuz without one we would the other wouldn’t be where they are today.

Alexandra Escobar

Just ordered Nexus 5…. android all the way!

http://linkedin.com/in/fwchapman Fred Chapman

Android all the way? Bernie in 2016? Miss Alex, you are the perfect woman! :)

NBM

Just my opinion, but I wouldn’t really describe the iPhone experience as “more integrated” over Android… especially since Google provides such enormously popular services that run Android’s core apps… the more services you use (most everyone has a Google account for something), the better and more integrated the new Android experience gets which then leads to Google Now, which integrates the user, those huge services, and third party apps (apparently even more so now with 4.4) which then integrates with the launcher. Aside from Google content, the user can also set default apps which makes their preferences the basis for their experience.

If you’re not interested in figuring out how all that works and what it equates to, then iOS is waaay easier to use and will provide a good consistent experience.

Jay Coleman

This is the problem with fanboyism…you can state facts and they’ll always ignore them and saying you’re lying, deluded etc. It’s pointless trying to talk to them about articles like this as they seem to think you’re trolling them. Regardless of whether your Apple/Android, Nvidia/AMD, BMW/Audi etc the list just goes on and on.

brenro

Another comparison of cell phones? Yawn. There is so little practical difference nowadays we’re splitting hairs down to the finest detail. A buyer’s guide for the average consumer? Not on this site. Everyone here is firmly entrenched in their respective camps. A few hundred dollar cell phone is the highest tech most people can afford. Hardly anything to brag about.

BunsenBurnerNiceLittleEarner

Are you kidding me? Uhhh, FOUR factors maybe, man?

The operating system?!

Jamell Lewis

People act like Apple can’t make a phone with a big screen, 1080p, quad or octa core, and a 13mp camera. Apple doesn’t need to put in monster specs to compensate for an un-optimized OS. The reason the nexus line up is so smooth is because Google has more control over the device and OS than other carriers and phone makers.

dantewaters

True (google see less is more) I like the devices Google makes…

Driver

If the new models are anything like the Nexus 4 and iPhone5 which I have both used the Nexus is a clear winner for anyone except for casual users that have trouble using any new tech such as grandma. After trying to get stuff done on the iPhone5 such as edit/write/save office documents and pics to cloud storage I gave up, there was simply no way to get anything serious done on the Apple. The Nexus was a revelation when using Google’s services to manipulate files they way I needed to. Other things I found disappointing with the iPhone was the screen size which IS too small, problems with editing text (compare editing text in an internet browser on iOS and Android next time you get a chance) and poor battery life compared to the Nexus which I could always get a few hours more life out of at the end of the day.

Tessoro Desoto

Biased? I did not find it to be biased at all. I have both phones and agree with what he says. Android users want so badly to see apple fail that end up talking non sense. Get over it, both are good, there isnt a winner or loser here.

Open ur eyes and see those pics… or change ur name to Anthony babababababa… might suit u better…

HowardBrazee

A comparison like that is useful if this is you don’t have a compatible smart phone. Otherwise, we need to know what we’re giving up if we switch from an old brand.

Prith IV

Nexus 5 wins in other test….???WTF…??security …speed…

serg

1136*640 you dont need to be a beast to move that amount of pixels just a kitten, no wonder only need 1gb…bike vs truck

sggodsell

You forgot to mention that the nexus 5 gives you 2 more sensors, for barometer and temperature. Plus with kitkat you get touch less control from the home screen now. So you can just say what you want.

crescentdave

Oh please. You really are trying to finesse the situation around screen size. The Nexus offers a huge (pun intended) advantage over the iPhone. You would have to use that size phone, exclusively, for at least two weeks, to “get it.” Otherwise, you’d be comparing the feel with something you’ve conditioned yourself to view as “normal.” And it’s obvious what’s “normal” for you. The larger and better display offers an immediate visual improvement, hands down. And that’s why people are overwhelmingly going to a larger size when given the choice.

What about customization? Widgets? What continues to be a more useful notifications feature? A superior search and maps experience? Google voice (I agree that Siri sounds ever so much more personable- but not as accurate in real world use). Voice commands?

Here’s what people want: screen, camera, a useful, entertaining and informative online store, good/responsive camera and great battery life. I’d say apple clearly has a better store and a quicker/better camera. I question battery life- since iOS 7 is a power-sucking operating system. Here’s what Engadget has to say about battery life:

“In our standard video loop test, we ran an HD movie through an endless cycle until the battery finally died after seven hours and 20 minutes.”

“In terms of normal usage (checking email and social media, taking a few pictures and videos, watching Netflix for an hour and reading several long-form articles on Chrome), we were able to eke out 12 hours of battery life.”

JohnDover

Mr Seb – that translates to Mr. Apple in India…. so there, i just explained why iphone wins without even reading his article.

They’re both great phones and it comes DOWN TO PREFERENCE!! My favourite is the Nexus 5 because it has a better display, faster and I prefer 4.4 KitKat for any Android phone.

Chris

Even before I was an Android power user I never would have considered the camera in a buying decision for a phone. I think a more accurate 3 things to consider for a non power user would be comfort in both phone calls and handling, battery life, and price. Those are things I am forced to live with when purchasing a phone. I suppose as a power user I buy a device for hardware, because I will modify the software to suit my needs. When you consider all things between the two phones comparable (latest hardware, latest software) excluding the price it becomes obvious that the Android is the winner. With the Nexus you are getting all of the flagship features are half of the price of the Apple. And still have cash in your pocket to go buy a real camera.

http://www.techrrival.com/ Mehul Boricha

Thanks

Shane Den

Apple iphone is the latest mobile modern technology that built in branded for customers. The Phone is the latest invention for customers. you can buy iphone and ship to india.

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